Winter Boot Time

[MUSKOKA800]

Sadly today I removed the summer performance sneakers in favour of the winter boots and their OEM steelies and covers.
Gave the steelies a fresh coat of Tremclad semi-gloss black and after scratch repairs hit the covers with some dark grey metallic. Should look better than the OEM silver covers against my silver commuter sedan.

[SirDigby]

I don't believe you did any of that.
do you have any proof?
I didn't think so...

[thebarber]

I should hit my steelies with something interesting

[Bluevitz-rs]

It's not gonna snow till January

[thebarber]

Originally Posted by Bluevitz-rs

It's not gonna snow till January

Itll be below 7c, though

[WeeYari]

Got my winter steelies on today. Doing nothing to pretty them up. Rat Rod Steelies FTW!

[tmontague]

damn you guys are early.

I don't throw mine on until it is consistently always below 7 degrees. There's a reason I get 6-8 winters out of my tires though.

I always see people with tires installed early October and they are either brand new or practically bald, they just wear down so darn fast in warmer temps

[snowsquirrel]

the temp is low enough for winter tires, unless you are waiting for the first snow!
those who need help from the garage to switch out theirs need to be proactive, to beat the long lines.

I've mine on since last weekend.

[WeeYari]

Originally Posted by tmontague

I don't throw mine on until it is consistently always below 7 degrees. There's a reason I get 6-8 winters out of my tires though.

This will be my third season on my second set of winters. The last week of October/first week of November is not too early. Daytime highs of 12c do not cook winters. Left it a little late one year and got hit by a surprise snow storm while still on my 1 seasons. Never again!

[tmontague]

I get it of time is limited due to the line up at the garages, but I'm talking about when you swap them yourself.

to each there own I guess, but day time highs of 12 and 15 degrees are to warm and will increase wear. Heck even 7 degrees will cause wear, they just perform better at those temps than all seasons.

In other words the "optimal" time to use them in regards to wear is completely different than the optimal time for performance. If you baby the tires on warmer days then that will likely help, but with the random warm spikes in southern ontario's weather added up over 4 or so years easily leads to 1 or 2 seasons less over the life of the tire.

[thebarber]

It's cold enough when I leave at 6am for London

[WeeYari]

Originally Posted by tmontague

I'm talking about when you swap them yourself.

So am I. My last set got retired with gobs of tread left on them. The rubber compound just got too hard due to getting so damn old.

As barber has eluded to, this time of year the bulk of drivers are hitting the road in the morning at 2c and again in the afternoon/evening at 6c.

Your argument doesn't really stand imo.


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[tmontague]

like I said, to each their own. I'm on the road at 5am and drive home between 7 and 8:30pm. I personally just don't feel the benefits of running winter tires at these temps outweigh the risk of possible premature wear due to fluctuations in the temps.

Just because 7 degrees is seen on the thermometer at a point in the day does not necessarily that is the ideal time to run those tires. As most manufacturers state when the temperature is consistently below 7 degrees is ideal.

I do agree however that the tread does harden up after 5 or so years and they need to be replaced regardless of tread depth. But me being a poor student I keep the tread as deep a possible because when i re sell them in 6 or so years the vast majority of people don't look at tire age, they only look at tread depth.

My swap time are obviously purely based on economy, not necessarily on performance. If my wallet wasn't so light I'd likely have my tires on in mid November and off at the end of March

[thebarber]

ive never seen significant wear by running them @7c

my view of it is that id rather wear my tires slightly then end up shiny-side down somewhere

[WeeYari]

My last thoughts on this;

- since typically we invest more on summer rubber than winter, why concern yourself with 'premature' winter tire wear caused by the odd spike in temperature.

- how far do you have to drive before summer tires warm up enough to eliminate the flat spot that develops sitting for extended period of time in cold weather? For me it's about 4 kms before the shaking and thumping disappears.

- since tire change-over involves brake servicing and wheel cleanup, I prefer not to do this in single digit temps.

Good discussion you started here MUSKOKA.

...and I'm done.

[Bluevitz-rs]

Originally Posted by Bluevitz-rs

It's not gonna snow till January

We got some wet snow last night

[WeeYari]

Originally Posted by Bluevitz-rs

We got some wet snow last night

Almost always we'll see snow make an appearance in October. Now you won't see any more until January

[SirDigby]

does anyone treat their tires before storing them? I spray down my winter tires with silicone and seal them in tire bags for the summer. this prevents them from getting harder. (unless they are crappy blizzak tires) (I also live in the desert climate)
I usually buy 2 new tires every year, rotate the last fronts to the rear, and pitch the old rear tires. there's no way I could have them last more then 2 winters...